Carabinieri Operation «Asmodeo» in Bassa Val di Susa (October 2026)
Date of the event:
On 1 October 2026 Carabinieri from Turin's Investigative Unit (Nucleo investigativo) arrested, at dawn, a 59-year-old man in Bassa Val di Susa at the end of the investigation known as Operation «Asmodeo», on charges of enslavement, mistreatment of family members, aggravated sexual violence and aggravated fraud against the State [1][2][3].
The investigation
According to investigators' account, the man ran yoga, meditation and self-defence classes to approach people in vulnerable circumstances, who were then housed in a residential community he ran. Within the facility, according to the prosecution, an environment developed that has been described as a pseudo-spiritual sect, in which residents were allegedly subjected to forms of control, physical and psychological violence, and sexual abuse [1][2][3].
The name of the operation
The investigation, led by the Carabinieri Investigative Unit of Turin, was code-named «Asmodeo», after a demon of Jewish and Christian tradition associated with greed, wrath and vengeance [3].
The arrest and the charges
The man, subject to a pre-trial custody order, was arrested at dawn on 1 October 2026 and taken to prison under the order. He faces charges of enslavement, mistreatment of family members, aggravated sexual violence and aggravated fraud against the State; the case is at the investigation stage, and the suspect is presumed innocent pending any final conviction [2].
Related articles: Operation «Asmodeo»: arrest in Val di Susa over yoga courses used as bait (October 2026), Val di Susa
Sources
- I corsi di yoga erano solo un'esca: in bassa Val di Susa un inferno di violenze fisiche, psicologiche e abusi sessuali — TorinoOggi, 1 October 2026
- Una comunità in Val Susa era la copertura per violenze e abusi sessuali su persone fragili — Quotidiano Piemontese, 1 October 2026
- Yoga e meditazione, poi la schiavitù e le violenze sessuali: scoperta una setta nel Torinese — la Repubblica Torino, 1 October 2026